by Sharon Packer

The Central American and Caribbean Games are held every four years. Athletes from 31 countries earn their right to compete by accruing points in the years leading up to the games. Dressage, jumping and eventing competitions are held. Riders who finish in the top three in their event go on to compete in the Pan American games in Toronto in 2015. Wellington’s own, Marco Bernal, will compete in the Toronto 2015 Pan Am Games. Born in Barranquilla, Colombia, Marco moved to Wellington 17 years ago to establish Marco Bernal International Dressage. To this observer, Marco met his goal of great success in earning an honorable name in the world of dressage, being a respected and much-loved member of his community in Wellington, and he is a very devoted husband and father. He has a achieved a balance in life that is quite difficult.

Marco’s accomplishments include: being the first Latin American to graduate from the prestigious German Riding School, Warendorf; silver medal at the Central American and Caribbean Games in 1990; team silver in the 1999 Pan-American Games in Winnipeg; record high scorer at WEF in 2005 with a score of 85.383%; and granted the wild card for competition in 2009 Rolex FEI World Cup in Las Vegas. There are simply too many wins to mention from his competition the USDF and FEI rated events held in the Wellington area.

Always present to support Marco, is his lovely wife Charlotte and children, Juanita, Manuela, and Marco Jr., known to family and friends as Junior. Having been at shows since 2008, I have had ample occasion to watch the children grow to adulthood. What wonderful children! The Bernal “children” (now young adults) have always been genuinely polite, always seeking to be helpful, and Junior was a volunteer doing whatever needed to be done at all shows. Often, I asked the children about what they were doing. The answers varied with what was most important activity at the time and riding was not of great importance, except that Junior really enjoyed polo.
I was often struck by the fact that the Bernal children were encouraged to develop their own interests, their own strengths. But it was with great pleasure that I saw the pure joy in Junior’s expression after he rode in his first rated competition.

Junior has been riding dressage for 5 years now and as can been seen is a stunning figure:

Marco Bernal, Jr. aboard Don Akzentus 2014 Photo by: Sharon Packer

The 22nd Central American and Caribbean Games in dressage were held November 16-19, 2014. Competing for Team Columbia, was Marco Bernal…….and Marco Antonia Bernal Kalb better know in Wellington as “Junior!”
And it was Junior’s scores in the first two days of competition that helped make Colombia the team to beat.

The three-day competition included Prix St. Georges, Intermediare I for team competition and a day of rest. Finishing the competition came the individual tests in the Kur (Freestyle).

Team Mexico finished with a Gold Medal scoring an overall average of 67.088% to nudge Colombia into a team Silver with their overall average of 67.044%. Team Guatemala earned the Bronze.

Individual competition in the Kur was held Wednesday, Nov. 19th. It was a great day for Marco Bernal and Farewell IV.

(Marco Bernal, Sr. and Farewell IV from the AGDF Nations Cup. Photo Credit:Sharon Packer)

Marco and Farewell IV earned the Individual Gold with 69.800%, edging out Yvonne Losos de Muniz and Foco Loco W (Dominican Republic) at 67.700% and Bernadette Pujals and Aurora el Camino (Mexico) at 69.675%.

When asked about his Gold medal finish, Marco stated:

“It was one of the most important and fulfilling competitions I’ve had. This is because I had the opportunity to compete with my son (JR) on my team. It was great to share the experience, success and the podium with him. And to receive the gold medal, as an individual was something that I had been working for and was very pleased with the effort Farewell IV put out. He also wanted the medal.”

Photos Provided by Marco Bernal International Dressage.

Cambridge, MA (December 3, 2014) — Kathy Connelly and Betsy Steiner, two of the biggest names in U.S. dressage, will launch their Nutrena/USDF Adult Clinic Series, “How to Develop a Winning Program and Partnership With Your Horse,” at the 2014 Adequan/USDF Convention held Dec. 3-6 in historic Cambridge, Mass.

The dressage icons will co-instruct the series, which will be held in each of the nine USDF regions and will run from the spring of 2015 through 2016. They will conduct five clinics aimed at the adult amateur in 2015 and four the following year. Eight riders chosen from a pool of diverse equestrians of all levels will participate in each clinic. Riders and auditors will benefit from the attention of both of the instructors as they take turns helping the riders and interacting with the attendees during the two-day clinics.

The duo will present their kick-off to the series at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 6 at the host hotel for the USDF convention, the Hyatt Regency Cambridge.

Connelly is a respected international trainer, coach, clinician and “S” judge and has excelled in the international show ring. She competed as a United States Equestrian Team Rider at the World Cup in Sweden and as the highest placed Grand Prix rider on the U.S. Bronze Medal Team at the North American Championships. She is the Vice Chairman of the USEF High Performance Dressage Committee, and was a U.S. Team selector for the 2012 London Olympics and 2014 World Equestrian Games. She is a popular commentator, having served at the 2010 World Equestrian Games, the 2013 USDF Dressage Finals and recently at the 2014 USDF Dressage Finals in Lexington, KY., providing expert analysis to the live-feed for the event.

Steiner is also an international dressage trainer, coach and clinician. She represented the U.S. at the World Equestrian Games in Sweden and is an accomplished commentator, having provided her expertise for the 1995 World Cup of Dressage, the 1996 Olympic Games and, most recently, the 2014 World Equestrian Games Trials in Gladstone, NJ.

“We are looking very forward to doing this,” Connelly said. “We are so enthusiastic and want it to be fun and joyful for the people. We have an amazing group of amateur riders in this country.”

She said that she and Steiner individualize their instruction for the clinics according to what the rider tells them about their present situation and they use that information to build upon. She added that their goal is produce a top educational experience with clearly presented material for both riders and auditors.

Both Connelly and Steiner share a belief in using a calm approach to teaching and they believe it’s important to help the horse and rider develop a partnership.

“It’s very important for a trainer, coach and instructor to leave the dignity of the horse and rider intact,” she continued. “We want for people to feel very comfortable to bring their treasure, which is their horse, to us.”

“I just finished doing the USEF/USDF live Internet commentary in Kentucky at the U.S. Dressage Finals and was very impressed with the presentation and riding of our United States Adult Amateurs,” she said. “Come one, come all to the clinics, riders and auditors. We welcome your participation!”

To learn more about the Nutrena/USDF Adult Clinic Series, click here http://www.usdf.org/education/clinics/adult/index.asp. To get more information about the Adequan/USDF Convention, go to https://www.usdf.org/convention/. For more information about Kathy Connelly and her impressive dressage background, email kathyconnellyavf@aol.com or call 978-486-8674.

Photo: Kathy Connelly (shown here long lining) and Betsy Steiner will kick-off “How to Develop a Winning Program and Partnership With Your Horse” at the 2014 Adequan/USDF Convention. (Brigitte Voelk -photo credit)

The inaugural ‘A Royal Canadian Evening’ was a great success. The head table, from left to right: The Countess Bathurst, Commander Chris Hadfield, Deborah Kinzinger Miculinic, Desi Dillingham, Vel Miculinic, Daisy Kinzinger and Frank Kinzinger (seated). Photo by One Shot George

FEI Group IV Chairman Mark Samuel placed the winning bid on the Canadian-made Norman guitar auctioned off by keynote speaker, Canadian astronaut Commander Chris Hadfield, to benefit C-DAAP. Photo by One Shot George

Guests at ‘A Royal Canadian Evening’ included Megan Lane, Belinda Trussell, Desi Dillingham, Victoria Winter, Eva Havaris and Christine Peters. Photo by One Shot George

Toronto, Ontario – The final numbers are in, and the inaugural ‘A Royal Canadian Evening’, held November 6 at the historic Casa Loma in the heart of Toronto, proved to be an extremely successful fundraising event, raising more than $20,000 for the Canadian Dressage Athlete Assistance Program (C-DAAP).

Founded by Deborah Kinzinger Miculinic, C-DAAP was developed as a means of assisting Canadian dressage athletes at the junior, young rider and high performance levels with the training, competitive and educational expenses incurred during their quest to represent Canada on the world stage. To date, seven high performances athletes – Jacqueline Brooks, Brittany Fraser, Jaimey Irwin, Megan Lane, Karen Pavivic, Belinda Trussell and Chris Von Martels, have received C-DAAP grants totaling more than $130,000, and now have their sights set on the 2015 Pan American Games to be held on home ground in Toronto, ON. In addition, C-DAAP has contributed over $30,000 to various rider support programs.

‘A Royal Canadian Evening’ brought friends of Canadian dressage together, with all of the net proceeds going to support C-DAAP. Canadian astronaut Commander Chris Hadfield entertained the audience as the keynote speaker at the black-tie affair, auctioning off the Canadian-made Norman guitar he played at the end of the evening. The Countess Bathurst was the Patron of ‘A Royal Canadian Evening’ while Canadian comedian Neil Aitchison acted as Master of Ceremonies. Butternut Ridge was the presenting sponsor, joined by supporting sponsors Omega Alpha and Groundswell.

With a variety of tempting items up for auction, the elegant dark bay filly, Bojidar, donated by Butternut Ridge, attracted the highest bid of the night. A bidding war erupted over a travel package to England that included a one-week stay at The Earl and Countess Bathurst’s estate in the Cotswolds, two nights at the Hampshire Four Seasons Hotel and Equestrian Center, and a $2,000 Air Canada gift voucher to travel in style.

Also proving extremely popular was the opportunity to customize a package with six-time Canadian Olympian, Christilot Boylen. As a memento of the experience, Boylen also gifted her 1971 Pan American Games Gold Medal won in Cali, Colombia, to the winning bidder.

“I am so appreciative of the support from those who purchased tickets and/or auction items, and I am very grateful to our supporting sponsors, Omega Alpha and Groundswell, who made the evening possible,” said Kinzinger Miculinic. “Raising funds for dressage is certainly not easy, and it requires the support of our entire community if we are to be able to provide funds to our riders when they need it most.

“With each dollar donated and each fundraiser we hold, C-DAAP will help our riders with funding to train and compete against the best in the world,” concluded Kinzinger Miculinic. “Following this event, Canada is one step closer to reaching the podium in international dressage.”

About the Canadian Dressage Athlete Assistance Program (C-DAAP)

The Canadian Dressage Athlete Assistance Program (C-DAAP) is a donor-driven program dedicated to supporting and advancing Canada’s junior, young rider and high performance riders. The program solicits contributions and awards grants to eligible Canadian dressage riders.

C-DAAP’s goal is to provide supplemental funding to Canadian dressage athletes to off-set training, competitive and educational expenses incurred during their quest for excellence, thus creating a bridge to high level national and international competition.

For more information, please visit here

Lexington,
KY (December 3, 2014) – The United States Dressage Federation announced today
that FEI Dressage Judge Genera …

Stockholm (SWE), 30 November 2014

Photo Caption: Sweden’s Tinne Vilhelmson-Silfven and Don Auriello stepping it out in style on their way to victory in today’s fourth leg of the Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014/2015 Western European League series at Stockholm (SWE). (FEI/Roland Thunholm)

FEI YouTube:

by Louise Parkes

Tinne Vilhelmson-Silfven steered Don Auriello to victory in today’s fourth leg of the Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014/2015 Western European League at Stockholm in Sweden. In yesterday’s Grand Prix it was Hans Peter Minderhoud who came out on top with Glock’s First when posting a personal best score. In today’s Freestyle however the Dutchman had to settle for runner-up spot while Sweden’s Minna Telde and Santana sealed third spot.

“I’m really pleased” said six-time Olympian Vilhelmson-Silfven this afternoon. “He (Don Auriello) was in over-drive yesterday in the Grand Prix because this is our first show since the World Championships and he was a feeling a bit too happy! Today I was maybe a little bit careful, but anyway I’m delighted with our result!” she said.

New venue

The fixture was staged at a new venue, the Friends Arena which is the Swedish national football stadium located just north of the city of Stockholm. With its retractable roof and vast amount of space it converted into an excellent equestrian sports arena that accommodated a wide range of activity throughout this week’s Swedish International Horse Show, including a thrilling indoor cross-country competition.

The atmosphere for Dressage is always expected to be considerably more reserved, but the home crowd couldn’t contain their delight with Minna Telde’s performance from the great Santana who really turned on the style. The 13-year-old horse is always a favourite for the courage he has shown since losing an eye following an accident some years ago. And with a Christmas-themed musical score and a real spring in his step he strutted his way through a lovely test that finished with his rider doing one-handed passage up the centre line to the rhythm of spectator’s applause. When the judge’s score of 75.550 went up on the board there was an even bigger explosion of excitement, but there was plenty more to come.

Fourth-last to go was Vilhelmson-Silfven, and the elegant Don Auriello raised the bar by a long margin when earning a mark of 80.875 as three of the four Ground Jury members put the pair in pole position. And Grand Prix winners, Minderhoud and Glock’s Flirt, couldn’t out-do them this time, posting 79.250 for runner-up spot.

Very happy

“I’ve scored 84 before in Freestyle so this isn’t our biggest result ever, but I’m very happy!” said Vilhelmson-Silfven afterwards. The 47-year-old Swede spent much of last winter in America, and she’s planning to do the same this time around. “I’m leaving for Florida on 21st December again so I’m not sure about qualifying for the Final” she pointed out. “I can only count one World Cup qualifier over there and I missed Odense (the first leg of the current Western European League series) so I’m not sure it’s going to happen” she explained.

Second-placed Minderhoud said he was very pleased with his ride today. “I knew it would be difficult to beat Tinne if she was on form, even though I made no mistakes” he pointed out. Talking about Glock’s Flirt he continued, “he is very easy to train and not spooky so that always makes them easier to deal with”, and he’s hoping to make it to the Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage Final 2014/2015 in Las Vegas, USA next April. “I’d really like to get there, but only three riders from each nation can compete and we have quite a few good ones!” he said.

Reaction

Minna Telde was delighted with the reaction of the crowd today. “Yesterday Santana was more tense but today he stayed calm and listened to me. This new music is great and I will ride it again in London if I can” said the 39-year-old who, however, definitely doesn’t have the Las Vegas Finals in her sights as she is expecting a new addition to the family next April.

Today’s winner was also very pleased with the result achieved by young German rider, 20-year-old Sonke Rothenberger, who lined up fourth with Favourit, a horse she took to two European Championships before selling it on to the German family two years ago.

“I’m very happy that Sonke is doing so well with him (Favourit) and that he is in a good place and being well cared for” Vilhelmson-Silfven said.

Meanwhile Minderhoud has now moved up to fifth in the Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014/2015 Western European League standings which are headed by Germany’s Fabienne Lutkemeier followed by two-time champion Adelinde Cornelissen from The Netherlands who shares second place with Denmark’s Agnete Kirk Thinggaard and Germany’s Jessica von Bredow-Werndl.

For further information on the Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014/2015 leg at Stockholm, Sweden go to website www.swedenhorseshow.se or contact Press Officer Lotta Amnestal, Email lotta.amnestal@ridsport.se, Tel +46 709 795835.

The next leg takes place at Olympia, London (GBR) on Sunday 21 December. For details of the British fixture go to www.olympiahoreshow.com or contact Press Officer Jo Peck, JoPeck@hpower.co.uk, +44 1753 847 900.

Result: 1, Don Auriello (Tinne Vilhelmson Silfven) SWE 80.875; 2, Glock’s Flirt (Hans Peter Minderhoud) NED 79.250; 3, Santana (Minna Telde) SWE 76.550; 4, Favourit (Sonke Rothenberger) GER 75.225; 5, Darcia VH (Jeanna Hogberg) SWE 74.850; 6, Toy Story (Patrik Kittel) SWE 74.275; 7, Diamonds Forever (Fabienne Lutkemeier) GER 73.700; 8, di Lapponia T (Paulinda Friberg) SWE 72.475; 9, Zircoon Spring Flower (Jennie Larsson) SWE 71.825; 10, Volstrupgaards Cassiopeia (Allan Skov) DEN 70.675; 11, Wilco V (Mario van Orshaegen) BEL 70.150; 12, Le Beau (Philipp Jorissen) BEL 70.075; 13, Vosk (Marina Aframeeva) RUS 68.500; 14, Kartsevo Upperville (Tatiana Dorofeeva) RUS 67.450; 15, Fleetwood (Malin Hamilton) SWE 63.925.

Full result here

Facts and Figures:

Stockholm in Sweden presented the fourth round of the Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014/2015 Western European League series today.
A total of seven Swedish riders competed in the field of 15 in today’s Grand Prix Freestyle.
The winner was Sweden’s Tinne Vilhelmson Silfven riding Don Auriello who topped the leader board with a score of 80.875.
The Stockholm fixture was staged at a new venue, the Friend’s Arena which is the Swedish national football stadium located just north of Stockholm.
The stadium has a retractable roof to accommodate sport in all weather conditions.
Today’s Ground Jury consisted of: at B, Jo Graham; At M, Liselotte Fore; At C, Gustav Svalling; At H, C Matthiesen; At E, Fransen Iacobeaus.
The next leg of the Reem Acra FEI World Cup™ Dressage 2014/2015 Western European League will take place on 21 December at Olympia, London where the multiple record-breakders and World No. 1 partnership of Great Britain’s Charlotte Dujardin and Valegro are scheduled to compete.

Lexington, KY (December 1, 2014) – The United States
Dressage Federation (USDF) is pleased to announce that Terry Ciotti …

To celebrate the festive season the Equestrian Creative Network (ECN) is giving creative professionals the chance to win a portfolio – each day for twelve days – to showcase their work free for a year. On two of the days in-house teams can win a portfolio to be able to use the ECN Newswire to help gain extra coverage for their press releases.

On the run up to Christmas a portfolio will be given away to a creative in the following categories of ECN membership:

Dec 12 – Photography
Dec 13 – Web design
Dec 14 – Art / illustration / animation
Dec 15 – Blogging
Dec 16 – PR & marketing
Dec 17 – In-house PR
Dec18 – Graphic design
Dec 19 – Journalism / copywriting
Dec 20 – Media/publishing
Dec 21 – Event management
Dec 22 – Video production
Dec 23 – In-house PR

For a chance to win on the day relevant to you post one of the following:

A tweet on Twitter:
Hey @EquineCreatives, all I want for Christmas is a portfolio on the Equestrian Creative Network!

Or,

A comment on the ECN Facebook page:
All I want for Christmas is a portfolio on the Equestrian Creative Network!

Here’s the science bit…
You can enter as many times as you wish if more than one day is relevant to your business. You only need to submit one entry each day. One entry per business will be placed in a hat and drawn at random. The competition is global but each ‘day’ will be identified as the 24-hour period in GMT.